This invention relates generally to gas turbine engines and more particularly, to methods and systems for detecting filter rupture in gas turbine engine inlet streams.
Gas turbine engines are used as a power source within a variety of applications. To protect the engine from the environment, and to shield the surrounding environment from the gas turbine engine, at least some known gas turbine engines are housed within an engine assembly compartment that includes an inlet area, an exhaust area, such as an extraction duct, and an engine area that extends between the inlet area and the exhaust area. For example in a power generation facility where the gas turbine engine is used as a power source for an electrical generator, the engine may be housed inside a compartment which facilitates reducing noise and heat generated during engine operation.
Within at least some known compartments, the inlet includes ducts that route ambient air from outside the compartment into the engine compartment for cooling the engine and compartment, and to the engine for supplying combustion air. Particulate or moisture carryover from the atmosphere to the gas turbine engine inlet can lead to failure of the compressor section of the gas turbine engine. To facilitate alleviating the effects of moisture carryover, at least some known gas turbine engines include a filter in the inlet duct that substantially prevents particulate and moisture carryover from reaching the gas turbine engine inlet. However, a failure or rupture of the filter may allow particulate and moisture carryover. Accordingly, at least some known gas turbine engines use a differential air pressure monitor that senses differential pressure across the filter as an indication of a ruptured filter. However, in some cases of filter rupture, the differential pressure may decrease, in other cases the differential pressure increases such that differential pressure is an unreliable parameter to monitor for filter failure detection.